Check back soon – recorded just days prior to the recent dramatic demolition of this behemoth, 4 Elegies will be posted – one for each of the original 4 Sisters – featuring wooden flute accompanied by birdsong and pneumatic drill as the site was prepped for implosion!
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Spadina ‘Pied Piper’
UPDATE: The Lakeview Power Plant Demolition (see GTA, 1908, below) has been postponed, and will NOT be taking place on Monday due to wind: an off-shore breeze and/or light rain are required. I had anticipated an early start tomorrow to witness this implosion, the largest evercovered ‘live’ in North America, (more…)
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Swinging Shepherd
There’s a murmur out of Mulmur…of the Real Estate variety, and after reading about Moe sitting on a rock playing his gold flute, I immediately think ‘Flute School in the Country’.
What better legacy for Moe Koffman, giant of the Canadian Jazz scene, than to have a country retreat in his name just north of the city for aspiring musicians? Call me a Romantic, however some of my finest schooling took place in wonderfully bucolic settings: The Banff Centre and Shawnigan Lake School (more…)
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4 Sisters Elegy
Okay, dear readers, this is what it’s all about: your city as a work in progress! What will Toronto look – and sound – like in 2012, or say 2020…let alone 2108?
Case in point, the massive base of the ‘4 Sisters’ Power Generator in Mississauga is currently rigged with 100’s of sticks of dynamite and will be brought down in a controlled implosion this coming Monday. With favourable weather – an off-shore breeze (more…)
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God Save the King
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Definitely the coolest construction site in the city, Bill Bolton Arena has just completed an extensive makeover and is back in operation. With all new boards and glass (seen here stacked in the background, awaiting installation), scrimmages have started up again and summer hockey camps are about to commence. (more…)
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Carnatic Violin
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The Royal Conservatory of Music has a western campus, the historic Cawthra-Adamson Estate in Mississauga, which is a wonderful location for music-making. Early summer sees the landscaped grounds transform into a verdant, Eden-like setting. (more…)
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Emily’s Music Notes
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This music tells the story of a young girl: her gift of second sight, escape from persecution, and a secret journal sewn in pieces into a patchwork quilt in Salem, Massachusetts over 200 years ago. Inspired by a true story, this is a quietly powerful piece, intuitively bringing optimism to the darkest of tales.
Composed as a school assignment, this is Emily’s first piece for flute.
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Gariboldi
Here is a view of the SaskPower building in downtown Regina, a 1960’s classic. This angle – from my exam room in the historic Hotel Saskatchewan – captures the whimsy of an architectural timepiece, and I was given the nod by security to record briefly during my tea-break. The lobby, festooned with ‘Green Energy’ literature, features vintage mosaic detailing, and a sizeable tiled fountain that can be heard in the background for this playing of a RCM Grade 2 study by Gariboldi.
Thanks to everyone at SaskPower for the warm welcome!
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Just back from an exciting week of being on the road in Regina and Winnipeg conducting exams for the Royal Conservatory of Music, and my prairie adventures began with flute music in Pearson Airport’s Terminal 1…little did I know what was in store for Urban Flute in the days that were to follow. (more…)
